Real
by Infamousplot
Summary: You humans are all the same. You come in acting like you love us, but honestly, you don't. We're nothing but pixels, little virtual pets for you to play with. We don't feel anything. I'm not even mad at you, because I'm not REAL. -Cynical take on Neopets.


**EDIT: Okay, it seems people are taking this the wrong way, so I just want to clarify some things: This is not ranting at anyone but myself. This is not a rant against Neopets. I happen to LOVE Neopets, and I grew up with the babified version of it and I like it the way it is. Yes, it sold out to advertising and the stupid Neocash thing... I hate that -_- But, anyway, this is in no way against Neopets.  
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**This is what my Zafara thinks of me, or what he SHOULD think of me, because I am a really suckish owner, inside and out of Neopets ._. I love my pets, I really do. They're adorable. But I have a lot of stuff to do... And Neopets kind of comes last -_-' This is basically the _real_ life of a Neopet -not the life we see in the Neopian Times, where the owners are there in Neopia with them. They know they aren't real, not _really_ real. They know they aren't supposed to really feel anything. But... Well, just read it, I guess.**

**Disclaimer: Neopets, petpets, species, games and all other respective Neopian items belong to Neopets and its creators.  
>Koto, Saki and the angry Zafara talking are my Neopets.<br>**

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><p>Oh. It's <em>you<em> again.

No, no, don't pay any attention to me. I'm just your stupid virtual pet, after all. It's not like _I_ give a damn how you spend your time, right?

I mean, sure, I'd _love_ it if you bothered to feed me something other than a bite of omelet every week or so, and a nice grooming would be great. But who gives a crap about what I want? It's not like I'm _real_ or anything.

Ah, that's right. Sometimes I forget I'm just some little toy, an icon on a website for you to dress up and play with. When you feel like it, that is.

I know, I know. You're just trying to save up for a Darigan Paintbrush, right? That uber expensive thing that'll cost more than YOU could ever afford. Maybe you don't realize it, but if you ever wanna see that baby in OUR inventory, you're gonna need to earn over 10,000 NP a day. And we all know _that_ won't be happening any time soon, not with your spending habits.

Sure, you splurge on a stupid petpet -or four - for Koto (when are you going to realize that petpets just don't like him?) or a paintbrush for Saki. But what about _me?_ I was your first pet, your baby. Sure, you didn't think of me until long after the others. But I was the first one you made on this account, the one you fed and read stories to and bought toys for. Now though, it's all about carting me from one freebie to the next –raise my stats at Coltzan's Shrine, cheat my HP up at the Water Faerie's and occasionally pick up a slice of omelet to split amongst the three of us. Woop-de-frickin-_doo_. You know, used food from the Money Tree is unsanitary. And a piece of omelet is not enough to keep three starving pets full!

It's not like there's much for me to do here, with our cheap little toys you managed to score at the Money Tree and The Abandoned Grundo Plushie of Random Crap, or whatever the little thing's name is. Whenever you come on, it's to play your stupid arcade games or read the Neopian Times. Then you sit around and dream about what it'd be like to have a piece published in it, but you decide "Nah, I'll just post it on _Fanfiction_, it can't get turned down there." Like they're going to care.

No one's going to care about some stupid, unpainted Zafara over there, some pathetic little OC. They hardly care over here.

It's like I don't even exist. I mean, I'm a Neopet- I hardly exist to begin with. But on a site like this, with no stories or comics to give me fame, no paint job or even any customization beyond this lousy Ghosterchief scarf, what good am I? I'll never be noticed. At least Koto and Saki are painted. At least you love them. They're your cute little babies, but what am I? The battle pet, the tough one. It's not like I need any attention, right? I don't need food, or toys, or grooming. I don't need love.

You think I like being dragged around through that God forsaken arcade? That I enjoy watching you play Meerca Chase and Snow Muncher every day, again and again? Well, I don't. It's boring as hell, and you know what? You suck at games. You'll never get a high score, or a trophy or an avatar from any of these games, and I'd rather battle that stupid Punch Bag Bob again that sit through another round of Turmac Roll.

Yes, that damned punching bag with the creepy glasses that has like, 1000 hit points. I know how much you hated that battle. You think I enjoyed it? I hate battle dome. You're too cheap to pay for codestones to get me to a higher level -you have to "save up" for a paintbrush. No, you can only make exceptions for your little babies. They can have petpets and paintbrushes, but I can't even get a bite of food unless it's to make sure I'm able to fight!

We're just clusters of pixels, sitting on this website, watching life go by. You go for days and weeks and even months without visiting us, then randomly reappear to play your games. Who cares though? We don't have _real_ feelings. We aren't _really_ hungry. Reading us books and buying us food is a waste of time. In fact, our entire existence is a waste of time.

It's sad, because our world revolves around you. After all, we wouldn't exist without you. If you didn't draw us and log on every now and then, what would we be? No one would visit us, no one would care… On Neopets, it's all about what you look like. If you don't have any customizations or a cool background, you're nothing. Even a boring, unpainted pet could get a spotlight if they had a nice outfit. But who wants to spend real life Neopoints- I mean _money_ –on pictures of clothing for an icon you'll probably abandon in a few years?

I remember when you adopted that Kau. Pichi Pachou, or something weird like that. You took us to the Pound, just to look around. Then you saw him. He was painted Cloud, and that's really all that mattered to you. You adopted him because, "ZOMG a painted pet!1!" Years on Neopets, and you're still as n00bish as ever.

You didn't care about him though. You even thought he was a girl. His gender didn't matter to you. His freaking _name_ didn't even matter! You don't even remember it! You ended up abandoning him a few weeks later. You've always had a weak stomach for the Pound -adopting random pets on random accounts, but never being able to leave one. Sure, you had to close your eyes while you pressed the buttons. Guess you couldn't bear to see him accusing you of throwing him away. But you knew what you were doing. And we all sat there and watched. All of us thinking, "Wow, that could have been me."

You humans are all the same. Shallow creatures who will choose a pet just because it's cute and fluffy, or just because you want some freaking avatar. You'll adopt a pet for having a "real world name", and condemn another for having numbers or underscores in its name.

You come into this world acting like you love us, like we matter. The first few days are always great. Poor little pets, fresh out of the Create A Pet machine, go toddling off with new owners every day, happy and excited, believing every word of love they hear. The poor saps believe that you care about them. They believe that they're special, thet you'll always love them and always take care of them. That's the promise you all make, and it's the promise you all break.

The sparkles will eventually fade away, and harsh reality will set in. You may act like you care about us, but the truth is, you really don't. Because honestly, we're nothing but a game to you. None of us are _real_, not to you. We don't get lonely when you forget to log out and leave us alone, or scared when you don't log in for awhile. We don't sit here and starve, not really, because we're just pixels. We're not alive, we don't feel hunger, or happiness, or anything. I'm not even really mad right now. I'm nothing but a cute little virtual pet, a toy for you to pet and play with until you get bored and log out. And it won't matter, because _I'm not real._

Right?

So go ahead. Go, play your stupid games and earn some more NP. I'll just be sitting here, watching. You can't hear it, but my stomach is growling. You can't see it, but my fur is all ratty because I can't get that stupid comb out of our inventory. You won't feel it, but when you move that mouse to click the Log Out button, my hand will catch your sleeve. I'll try to stop you, try to ask you not to go.

But you won't hear me. You never have. And you probably never will.

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><p><strong>I'm an awful owner who can't afford a Darigan Paintbrush for her poor Zafara (who I did end up painting ghost) and wastes her money on crap for her other pets. <strong>

**Um... Yeah. I liked the idea of a Neopet thinking nasty, cynical thoughts about its owner, who is supposed to love it and take care of it. But that's not how life always works out. Because, when you come down to it, the Neopet isn't really real to it's owner. Maybe sometimes it seems that way, but in the end, its nothing more than a virtual pet on a website. And if something happens, they're replaceable. They won't be cried over, at least not for very long. It sucks. It's sad, and even though it's pretty much accepted its fate, it still wishes it could be _truly_ loved.**

**Depressed Neopet is Depressed ._.**

**So... Review? Please? And yes, the grammar may suck, but this is a thought process, so it's meant to be choppy and stuff like that.  
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